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A forensics expert who performed the autopsy on Jonathan Ferrell dominated testimony Thursday in the Randall Kerrick trial. Ferrell was shot and killed two years ago by former CMPD officer Kerrick. He was unarmed at the time.

There’s been a rise in prepper culture over the last decade. Preppers are people who stockpile food, water, weapons and other items for survival in the event of a major crisis. It’s turned into a boom industry. Just look to your TV for proof. There’s several prepper reality shows, such as Doomsday Preppers on the National Geographic Channel.

Ralph Broome has joined the industry. He’s the owner of what’s being described as Charlotte’s first store for preppers, Carolina Preppers and Survivors on South Boulevard. Inside, you’ll find all you need for doomsday: a variety of military clothing, bullet proof vests, guides on how to survive in the wilderness and how to make booby traps, even large drums for storing water. Broome is a Vietnam veteran, and in his camouflage pants he appears ready for the end of the world.

You may have heard the governor released a plan Wednesday for boosting teacher pay. But there was a second teacher pay announcement by Lieutenant Governor Dan Forest. His proposal would give people the chance to pay for higher teacher salaries, not through their taxes, but through donations.

Spoken word poetry is about dramatic storytelling. A Raleigh performance poetry group called Sacrificial Poets is performing at UNC Charlotte this weekend. They're in town for a three-day residency that involves teaching college students and visiting some local schools to teach them about the art of busting a rhyme.

Sacrificial Poets artist director Kane "Novakane" Smego, starts off the class with a piece about growing up in Durham with a single mother.

Thirty-seven teams competed for the top spot at the eighth annual dragon boat festival in Cornelius on Saturday. The teams consisted of up to 20 people and included three rounds of 200-meter races. Wells Fargo Aquabeasts (Team I) took home the top prize.

A Charlotte church invited folks to exchange their guns for gifts over the weekend. The New Life Fellowship Center has been doing that around the holidays for the past six years. This year, the pastor says some of the people turning in their guns had the shootings in Newtown, Connecticut on their minds.

John Kee has been the pastor at New Life Fellowship Center for more than 17 years. He says during his time as pastor of the Double Oaks community, he's learned a lot. Especially about violence in his community.